Trending now and hot, hot, hot! We are absolutely in love with this idea. A post-toast is a wedding welcome party for out-of-town guests but it is held immediately following the wedding rehearsal. Old etiquette stated that it was oh-so-important to invite every single soul to the rehearsal dinner but times are changing. Before marriage, research now shows that a high number of brides and grooms have relocated from their hometown for their careers. This means a rehearsal dinner can quickly grow from an intimate amount of out of town guests to your entire alma mater. The solutions for a family-filled rehearsal dinner plus making those OOT guests feel welcomed?! Look at having a post-toast.

Hosting a post-toast is easy but we highly recommend hiring a professional planner for this one (of course, we’re partial). First, find a location for a rehearsal dinner that can also be used for a larger reception after the dinner is complete. Second, make sure the venue & caterer are onboard. Most will love this idea too – you are already paying for the venue, so extend a few hours – open the bar – have some dessert stations and have fun. Our favorite post-toast tips are to make it fun and entertaining for your guests. Think: experiences and not just another dinner. Think: bands, fun unique entertainment such as a big Texas welcome, butt-sketch artists or craft bartenders. Think: rehearsal dinner inside with the post-toast outside. Want to do something fun for the wedding reception but it’s not elegant enough? Add it to the post-toast. This event can set the entire weekend off with a great start!

How many awesome welcome parties after the rehearsal dinners have you been to? None, you say. Hello – we’re here to help you achieve just that. Follow us on Facebook @SarabethEvents or Instagram @SarabethEvents.

When planning a wedding your guest list is one of the first places you need to start. In order to pick a venue you need to be sure your guest size fits. Guest list can get out of hand real quick depending how big your family is or depending how close you are to your coworkers. When making your guest list here are some people to rethink before putting them on the list

Photo Credit: Mariel & Joey

If you come from a large family with extended cousins you sometimes feel like you need to invite them all but with children that might be your entire list. Truly you need to invite only your immediate family, this includes your aunts, uncles, and first cousins. When it comes to second and third cousins that depends how close you are to them.

Co-workers, of course you see most of these people on a daily basis but who do you really communicate with while at work? If you see this co-worker outside of work then they should certainly be on the list.

Who gets a plus one, do not feel like every single person needs to have a plus one. If the best man usually has a new girlfriend every other month than it is best to just invite him. Think about your wedding pictures and who you want to see looking back at them years to come.

Families with children, this is certainly up to the bride & groom if they want to invite children. An easy way to get away from this is to address the invitation to just the parents or state it will be an adult reception on the invitation. Of course you may want your niece & nephew there because they are your flower girl & ring bearer that does not mean you have to extend the invite to all other families with children.

Parents guest list; give both sides the same amount of guest they can invite but go through the list with them. Sometimes you might have the same person already on your list as well.

Childhood friends; if you have not seen or talked to them besides social media over the past two years then you can exclude them from the list. Although if their parents are invited due to being our your parents list then they will need to be included.

Photo Credit: Peyronet Photography

You can also create a A & B list; the A list would include all your close family & friends people you would be so sad not to see on the biggest day of your life. The B list would be for example the co-workers you see every day but do not necessary have the closest relationship with. When sending out your invitations send the A list first and a couple weeks earlier than normal. Once you get some of the responses as a “no” you can start to send the B list.

We hope these suggestions help you when creating your wedding guest list. Tell us all about your wedding guest list, did you have problems cutting it down? Follow us on Facebook @SarabethEvents or Instagram @SarabethEvents.

Planning a wedding can be one of the most stressful situations a couple is put through. Most fiancés will say whatever she wants I am happy with, but really she wants your opinion and thoughts. You are about to say “I Do” for the rest of your life and you will be turning to each other for years come; needing each others opinions. We have come up with a few ways to get your groom involved in the wedding planning.

First sit down and discuss what you are both wanting out of the wedding. Does he want a band that will keep the guest dancing all into the night? If so put him in charge of the entertainment. Of course you both need to make the final decision together but he will be in charge of finding the bands and picking out the best one!

Photo Credit: Mariel & Joey Photographers of Life and Love

The attire is very important for the bridal party, the bride is in charge of the bridesmaids so put him in charge of the groomsmen’s attire. Have him go try on styles and colors you have both picked. Then after selecting the mens attire he will have the task to get all the information to the groomsmen so they can get fitted.

One of a grooms most favorite parts of wedding planning is the food. When selecting your style of wedding discuss what kind of food you both want served. Maybe he loves hamburgers and fries and really wants to serve that at the wedding. Don’t worry you can totally do this with mini burgers served for cocktail hour or as a late night passed app. Be creative with his wishes when menu planning.

Photo Credit: Craig Paulson Photography

With all this planning you are both going to need a vacation. Traditionally the groom is in charge of planning the honeymoon. So tell him just a few of your destination wishes and then let him take care of the rest.

Throughout the entire planning process keep him involved by giving him updates or asking his opinion. Show him the flowers you have picked. Let him decide on his style of grooms cake. Of course you two do not need to go to every vendor meeting together but just make sure his opinion is present.

We hope these tips help you with keeping your fiancé involved in the wedding planning process. Tell us all about how you and your husband planned your wedding together follow us on Facebook @SarabethEvents or Instagram @SarabethEvents.

When planning your wedding the question of dress code comes up often. How causal do you want your guest to look and feel? We have come up with a few wedding dress code descriptions to help you when planning your wedding and help your guest on what to wear!

We hope this helps you and your guests on knowing what to wear to your dress code wedding! Tell us all about your wedding dress code, do you wish you would have done black tie or causal? Follow us on Facebook @SarabethEvents or Instagram @SarabethEvents.